GB1138374A - Process for the preparation of polystyrene with a great impact resistance - Google Patents

Abstract

1,138,374. Impact - resistant polystyrene. SHELL INTERNATIONALE RESEARCH MAATSCHAPPIJ N.V. 26 Oct., 1966 [28 Oct., 1965], No. 48060/66. Heading C3G. An impact-resistant polymer is produced by polymerizing a solution of at least one synthetic rubber and/or natural rubber in at least one styrene (as hereinafter defined), the polymerization being performed in the presence of at least one styrene-soluble carbonyloxy compound containing more than 8 carbon atoms and at least one olefinic double bond and which can be represented by the formula in which R 1 is hydrogen or a substituted or unsubstituted hydrocarbon radical and R 2 is a hydrocarbon radical, or has been obtained by reaction of an epoxy resin with an olefinically unsaturated carboxylic acid. The term " styrene includes alkyl styrenes, alphamethyl styrene, divinyl benzene and vinyl naphthalenes. The carbonyloxy compound is for instance an alkyl or alkenyl ester of an unsaturated carboxylic acid, e.g. oleic, linoleic, linolenic or 10-undecylenic acid, or an alkenyl ester of a saturated carboxylic acid, e.g. vinyl and 1-methyl vinyl esters of stearic, palmitic, myristic, lauric and caproic acids or of acids with quaternary or tertiary α-carbon atoms. Compounds other than the rubber and carbonyloxy compound may be dissolved in the styrene, e.g. a monomer such as acrylonitrile, acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, an ester of such an acid or a diene, or other macromolecular substances. In the examples, polybutadiene is dissolved in styrene along with a compound selected from vinyl stearate, a vinyl ester of a mixture of branched C 9- C 11 -carboxylic acids, 2-ethylhexyl acrylate and an epichlorohydrin/diphenylolpropane condensation product esterified with fatty acids of linseed oil. The resulting solutions are polymerized using dilauryl peroxide as catalyst.